Patterns and Perceptions of Climate Change in a Biodiversity Conservation Hotspot

Quantifying local people's perceptions to climate change, and their assessments of which changes matter, is fundamental to addressing the dual challenge of land conservation and poverty alleviation in densely populated tropical regions To develop appropriate policies and responses, it will be important not only to anticipate the nature of expected changes, but also how they are perceived, interpreted and adapted to by local residents. The Albertine Rift region in East Africa is one of the world's most threatened biodiversity hotspots due to dense smallholder agriculture, high levels of land and resource pressures, and habitat loss and conversion. Results of three separate household surveys conducted in the vicinity of Kibale National Park during the late 2000s indicate that farmers are concerned with variable precipitation. Many survey respondents reported that conditions are drier and rainfall timing is becoming less predictable. Analysis of daily rainfall data for the climate normal period 1981 to 2010 indicates that total rainfall both within and across seasons has not changed significantly, although the timing and transitions of seasons has been highly variable. Results of rainfall data analysis also indicate significant changes in the intra-seasonal rainfall distribution, including longer dry periods within rainy seasons, which may contribute to the perceived decrease in rainfall and can compromise food security. Our results highlight the need for fine-scale climate information to assist agro-ecological communities in developing effective adaptive management

Contribution of spatially explicit models to climate change adaptation and mitigation plans for a priority forest habitat

Climate change will impact forest ecosystems, their biodiversity and the livelihoods they sustain. Several adaptation and mitigation strategies to counteract climate change impacts have been proposed for these ecosystems. However, effective implementation of such strategies requires a clear understanding of how climate change will influence the future distribution of forest ecosystems. This study uses maximum entropy modelling (MaxEnt) to predict environmentally suitable areas for cork oak (Quercus suber) woodlands, a socio-economically important forest ecosystem protected by the European Union Habitats Directive. Specifically, we use two climate change scenarios to predict changes in environmental suitability across the entire geographical range of the cork oak and in areas where stands were recently established. Up to 40 % of current environmentally suitable areas for cork oak may be lost by 2070, mainly in northern Africa and southern Iberian Peninsula. Almost 90 % of new cork oak stands are predicted to lose suitability by the end of the century, but future plantations can take advantage of increasing suitability in northern Iberian Peninsula and France. The predicted impacts cross-country borders, showing that a multinational strategy, will be required for cork oak woodland adaptation to climate change. Such a strategy must be regionally adjusted, featuring the protection of refugia sites in southern areas and stimulating sustainable forest management in areas that will keep long-term suitability. Afforestation efforts should also be promoted but must consider environmental suitability and land competition issues

Physico-chemical properties and fatty acid composition of Lagneraria siceraria seed oil

Oil was extracted from the dehulled seeds of Lagneraria siceraria (bottle gourd) and analysed for physico-chemical properties, as well a fatty acid composition. Standard procedures were employed in all analysis. The seed oil was liquid at room temperature with percentage yield (23.65%). The oil was characterized in terms of specific gravity (0.918 g/cm3), refractive index (1.34), viscosity (26.46 X 103 poise), melting point (11-14.5 °C), moisture content (0.18%), saponification value (203.36 mg KOH/g), unsaponifiable matter (7.13%), iodine value (46.1 g/100g), peroxide value (7.5 meq/kg), free fatty acid value (18.42%), acid value (60.02 mg KOH/g) and ester value (143.34 mg KOH/g). It was also classified as non- drying (iodine value ˂115 g/100 g). The peroxide value indicates that the oil is less prone to rancidity with iodine value less than 30meq/kg. The high saponification value qualifies it for use in the manufacture of soaps and shampoos. Four classes of fatty acid were identified in the oil: palmitic acid (C16:1) (13.5 ± 0.21), stearic acid (C18:1) (6.5 ± 0.96), oleic acid (C18:1) (11.6 ± 0.62) and linoleic acid (C18:2) (68.4 ± 0.13). Linoleic acid was the most abundant fatty acid in the oil. The fatty acid content of the oil reveals that L. Siceraria seed oil could be a rich source of oil for domestic and industrial purposes if exploited

Inhibition studies of Spondias mombin L. in 0.1 HCl solution on mild steel and verification of a new temperature coefficient of inhibition efficiency equation for adsorption mechanism elucidation

This research investigated the inhibition behavior of Spondias mombin leaf (SML) extracts in 0.1 M HCl solution on mild steel at various concentrations and temperatures. The result reveals that the inhibition efficiency of the extract on the mild steel sheet increases with increasing concentration of the extract and decreases with increase in temperature. Therefore, the adsorption mechanism of the extract on the mild steel surface is physical. Calculated Correlation Coefficient (R2) values show that the process follows a Freundlich adsorption isotherm. The proposed temperature coefficient equation of adsorption mechanism was found to be appropriate

The value of indigenous knowledge in climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies in the African Sahel

Adaptation, Africa, Indigenous knowledge, Mitigation, Sahel, Sustainable development,

Observation needs for climate information, prediction and application: capabilities of existing and future observing systems

The demand for long-term, sustained, reliable data and derived information on climate and its changes has never been greater than today. Long-term, well-calibrated, global observations of Essential Climate Variables (ECV) such as air temperature, precipitation, and sea-surface temperature are critical for defining the evolving state of the Earth's climate. Observing systems routinely collect much of the required data covering 49 ECVs, and significant progress has been made in coverage and technological capability over the two decades since the Second World Climate Conference. However, many key regions and climatic zones remain poorly observed, and gaps are widening in some cases. Supporting infrastructures for data stewardship and analysis are largely in place but require strengthening, while those for linking with socio-economic data and for providing user-oriented information services require more substantial development. The current capabilities are summarized, and further actions are identified to ensure that climate observation activities more fully meet the needs of science and society. The Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) was established in 1992 with the goal of providing comprehensive information on the total climate system, involving a multidisciplinary range of physical, chemical and biological observations of the atmosphere, oceans and land. GCOS is a “system of systems” that builds on the climate-relevant components of existing observing systems, and relies almost entirely upon national efforts to maintain and enhance those systems. Contributing systems include the World Meteorological Organization Global Observing System (GOS) for meteorology, its Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) for atmospheric composition, the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), led by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), and the Global Terrestrial Observing System (GTOS), led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). GCOS itself is the climate observing system within the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) developed under the auspices of the Group on Earth Observations (GEO). The established in situ networks and space-based components must be sustained and operated with ongoing attention to data quality in accordance with the GCOS Climate Monitoring Principles; enhancements must be made for some types of observations; the exchange of observations and delivery of data and information to users must be ensured; reprocessing and reanalysis must be strengthened; and national and international coordination must be improved. The consequence of not meeting these requirements would be to seriously compromise the information on, and predictions of, climate variability and change. Detailed information on GCOS and the datasets that are produced as a result of GCOS observing activities can be found at the Global Observing Systems Information Center (GOSIC) at http://gosic.org